Internet video take-up to be driven by TVs, Blu-ray Players

In the US maybe, but not over here

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Blu-ray Disc players and HD TVs will drive the domestic take-up of internet video services, it has been claimed.

Market watcher IMS Research has said that, worldwide, internet video device shipments will leap 78 per cent year on year during 2010.

While set-top boxes, games consoles and media extenders will play a part, it'll be Blu-ray players and internet-enabled TVs that really win over consumers, the researcher forecast.

However, it's worth noting there's a US slant to all this. IMS Research's Rebecca Kurlak said: "With nearly all Blu-ray players manufactured with IP connectivity enabling access to VoD libraries like Netflix, Amazon, Vudu and CinemaNow, Blu-ray players are more compelling for purchase consideration than they have been since their market debut."

All those services are aimed at US consumers, and there's a marked lack of similar offerings over here. That said, internet-connected tellies from the likes of Panasonic, for example, do at least provide YouTube feeds.

No major Blu-ray Disc player maker is touting internet video feeds over here right now, but Humax Freesat boxes now offer a link to BBC iPlayer, and satellite set-tops from other vendors will follow. Freeview HD boxes will likely do the same. Games consoles already do.

In the UK, then, it looks like these other devices will do more to bring internet video into the living room than Blu-ray boxes will. ®